Medix Recruiter Cheat Sheet: Resume Errors

Searching for a job requires a good memory. From tips for navigating online job boards, to resume formatting guidelines, to interview faux pas, there is a lot of important information to remember! That’s why we’re spending this week sharing our recruiters’ top tips for job seekers in three common areas of concern: resume errors, follow-up flubs and interview missteps. Welcome to Medix’s Recruiter Cheat Sheet series! Each day, we’ll share an easy to save list of top reminders straight from the source.

First and foremost, an active job candidate must be prepared with an up-to-date, professional resume document. Not only is this necessary for most online applications, a professional resume can act as a potential employer’s first introduction to your life and experiences. Unfortunately, there are a multitude of unwritten rules and expectations surrounding resumes.

Here are Medix recruiters’ top tips for job seekers about avoiding resume errors:

Before you start creating or revising your new resume, keep these tips directly from our recruiters in mind:

Always include your contact information at the very top of the resume and make it easy to find.

Remember to include a current, permanent address. If you are living at school, it’s nice to know where you will relocate to after graduation.

Make sure all of your information is up to date. If you check a school email instead of a personal email, make sure to include the account that you access most often.

If you live at school or don’t access a landline often, list your cellphone instead of home phone.

Check for spelling and grammar errors prior to submitting to a recruiter. Then, check again!

Use a font that is easy to read, and don’t get too creative with a PDF or heavily graphically designed resume – unless that is your field. If you are looking for business roles, keep it simple and concise; send resumes in a plain Word format to recruiters.

If you don’t already have a professional email, create one. Simply use your first and last name; don’t use other words in your email account name.

If you’re concerned about rebooting your resume, print out these recruiter tips as a handy reminder of what to remember. Do you have any resume tips to share? Join the conversation below!

I’ve been having some confusion about how to list temp assignments along with permanent jobs. I started listing them under a section I created for contracted positions but that tends to lead to having to explain and distracts from focus on qualifications. I have a long list of temp jobs and I thought it would seem more uniform. I just want to arrange the jobs in a way where it’s easy for a reviewer to distinguish between temp and permanent jobs.

Hi Telly,
Thank you for sharing your concern! If you are worried about the separate “Temporary” section being too distracting for readers, have you attempted noting the temporary status of these positions either in the start/end dates or with another smaller indicator (ex. symbol or other less distracting demarcation?)
If you would like more in-depth help with your resume, our recruiters are always happy to lend an extra set of eyes; please contact your nearest office today! Thanks again for joining our conversation.http://medixteam.com/locations/

These tips were far from helpful . I guess in the eyes of a new grad professional it may seem helpful or someone who has no idea about resume writing. Maybe some tips about wordings to use, or telling them how to format a professional resume or telling them that a resume should tell a brief story/history about their accomplishments.

Recently a Professional in the field went over my resume…1)we eliminated started the sentence off with I…”I was responsible” …”I did…..”
and 2) Mininmized the pages…so now I have a 2 page resume instead of 3

Hi Blake,
Thank you for reaching out with this formatting question! In truth, employers all have differing requests when it comes to application materials. Make sure to follow the requirements outlined for each specific opportunity. However, more often than not, a plain text-based document that uses minimal special formatting (such as images, large file sizes, etc.) will be easiest for a wide-range of employers and systems to access.

Hi Kevin,
Thank you for reaching out today! Depending on the industry you work in, a certifications/license section may be more or less important than some other resume sections. If these certifications are key for the role, you might want to consider nudging them up a bit. However, our recruiters can give you more hands-on assistance with your resume, if you’re interested! Here’s a link to find the Medix office closest to you:http://medixteam.com/locations/
Thanks again!